ADVANCED CLINICS

U.S. Soccer Referee Program

2026 Regional & National Referee Handout

Source document: "2026 Course Eligibility & Requirements," updated June 23, 2025

Important Reminder

The U.S. Soccer document states that its information is a general outline of eligibility and certification/recertification requirements, plus additional information related to license acquisition.
For detailed current requirements for each course, officials should review the Course Timeline in the U.S. Soccer Learning Center before enrolling.
For requirements marked with (!), a request must be sent to referee@ussoccer.org to override automatic Learning Center course eligibility requirements.
The source document states it was current as of June 23, 2025.

Referee Pathway Context

The referee pathway: Referee → Regional → National → Professional → FIFA

This handout focuses on Regional Referee, National Referee, National Assistant Referee, and directly related Emeritus, evaluation, fee, badge, materials, and instruction requirements.

Regional Referee — Course Summary

First-Time Regional Referee

Minimum age	18
Delivery	Hybrid
Online duration	5 hours
In-person duration	2–3 hours

Referee license in each of the two previous license years (or one year for adult amateur/professional players or coaches with a "C" license or higher). Must meet match-count rules.

Regional Referee Recertification

Minimum age	18
Delivery	Online OR in-person
Online duration	1 hour
In-person duration	5–6 hours

Regional Referee license in the previous license year. Must meet annual game-count rules.

First-Time Regional Referee — Detailed Requirements

Age

18 or older

Enrollment

Registration

Certification

Referee license for each of the two previous registration years. (One year if adult professional player or coach with "C" license or higher.)

Game experience

25 games as referee AND 15 games as assistant referee at adult amateur level or above. (Not required for qualifying players/coaches.)

Safety & compliance

Background Screening · SafeSport training · Safe and Healthy Playing Environments

Training

Online/in-person Regional Referee training · Online Laws of the Game update · In-person practical training

Fitness test

FIFA Fitness Test (sprint and interval). Male: Women's Category 1. Female: Women's Category 3. Must be completed within current or previous registration year.

Evaluations

Three evaluations as referee within previous registration year. Final score average 8.0 or above. (2026 reg. year: July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025.) Adult amateur or above; max one U18/U19 match with 45-min halves.

2026 Changes: Course materials updated · Clarification on evaluations (referee, not AR) and scoring · Introduction of in-person delivery option with U.S. Soccer Refereeing Way materials.

Regional Referee Recertification — Detailed Requirements

Age

18 or older

Enrollment

Registration

Certification

At least one Regional Referee license in the previous three registration years, OR a career National Referee or National Assistant Referee license.

Safety & compliance

Background Screening · SafeSport training · Safe and Healthy Playing Environments

Training

Online or in-person Regional Referee recertification training · Online Laws of the Game update · In-person/virtual practical training

Fitness test

FIFA Fitness Test (sprint and interval). Male: Women's Category 1. Female: Women's Category 3. Must be completed within current registration year.

Evaluations

Two evaluations as referee within previous registration year. Final score average 8.0 or above. (2026 reg. year: July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025.) Adult amateur or above; max one U18/U19 match with 45-min halves.

2026 Changes: Course materials updated · Evaluations clarified (referee, not AR) · In-person option introduced · Practical training materials provided as optional sessions.

Regional Evaluations

Who may evaluate

A Referee Coach or National Referee Coach

Acceptable matches

Adult amateur matches or above. U18/U19 matches with 45-minute halves. (High school and college not yet eligible.)

Fees

Set by the SRC

Submission

All 2026 Regional evaluations must be submitted in U.S. Soccer's RefEvals system.

Scoring — First-Time Regional: 3 games required, average 8.0+. Recertification: 2 games required, average 8.0+. If the required average is not met, remove the lowest score and replace with one additional match; the adjusted average must be 8.0+. A second additional match is not permitted.

National Referee / National Assistant Referee — Course Summary

First-Time National Referee / NAR

Minimum age	21
Enrollment	Application (selected by U.S. Soccer)
Delivery	Online AND camp
In-person duration	Four days

Recertifying National Referee / NAR

Minimum age	21
Enrollment	Application (selected by U.S. Soccer)
Delivery	Online AND camp
In-person duration	Four days

First-Time National Referee / NAR — Detailed Requirements

Age

21 or older

Enrollment

Application required · Selected by U.S. Soccer National Selection Committee

Certification

Regional Referee license in each of the two previous registration years

Game experience

55 games at adult amateur or higher (incl. pro/international) · 40 as referee · 25 as assistant referee

Safety & compliance

Background Screening · SafeSport training · Safe and Healthy Playing Environments

Training

Online National Match Official training · Online Laws of the Game update · In-person National Camp

Fitness test

FIFA Fitness Test, all parts. Male: Men's Category 1. Female: Women's Category 1.

Evaluations

Minimum 3 National evaluations (referee or AR, relevant to license sought) by three different U.S. Soccer-credentialed National Referee Coaches. Period: July 1, 2024 through application deadline.

2026 Change: Evaluation period adjusted to provide more time for officials to acquire evaluations.

Recertifying National Referee / NAR — Detailed Requirements

Age

21 or older

Enrollment

Application required · Selected by U.S. Soccer National Selection Committee

Certification

National Match Official license in the previous registration year

Game experience

12 games at adult amateur or higher (incl. pro/international) in previous registration year. Exemptions may apply for illness, injury, or pregnancy.

Safety & compliance

Background Screening · SafeSport training · Safe and Healthy Playing Environments

Training

Online National Match Official recertification training · Online Laws of the Game update · In-person National Camp

Fitness test

FIFA Fitness Test, all parts. Male: Men's Category 1. Female: Women's Category 1.

Evaluations

Minimum 3 National evaluations (referee or AR, relevant to license sought) by three different U.S. Soccer-credentialed National Referee Coaches. Period: July 1, 2024 through application deadline.

2026 Changes: Game count clarified as annual requirement · Evaluation period adjusted.

National Evaluations

Amateur Matches

Must be conducted by a U.S. Soccer National Referee Coach. Eligible competitions include USL Academy U20, NPSL, USSSA, UWS, WPSL, USASA competitions, and local state adult leagues.

Cost: $200.00 (covers all match officials on that match). Payment through the SRC — referees do not pay coaches directly.

Submitted in U.S. Soccer's RefEvals system.

PRO Matches

Eligible leagues: NWSL · USL Super League · USL Championship · USL League One. Additional: MLS Next Pro · USL Jägermeister Cup.

Fee when NRC is also PRO Observer: $100.00. Fee when NRC is not PRO Observer: $200.00. Payment must be made to the NRC before the game.

This is the only occasion where direct payment to a National Referee Coach is permitted.

Emeritus, Badges & Administrative Details

Regional Emeritus Referee

Minimum age: 45 · Delivery: Online only (1 hr)

Any combination of Regional Referee and/or Regional Emeritus licenses for at least 3 cumulative years. Background Screening, SafeSport, SHPE, Online Emeritus Course, Laws of the Game update. No fitness test. No 2026 changes.

National Emeritus Referee

Minimum age: 45 · Delivery: Online only (1 hr)

Any combination of National, PRO, FIFA, or National Emeritus licenses for at least 3 cumulative years. Background Screening, SafeSport, SHPE, Online Emeritus Course, Laws of the Game update. No fitness test. No 2026 changes.

Badges

Upon completion of a referee course, referees receive a badge from their SRC for their respective level (exception: National courses run by U.S. Soccer).

Green badge: Issued to anyone under 18 at the time of course completion; worn for the entirety of that registration year.

Course Fees & Surcharges

Course fees set by each SRC. U.S. Soccer surcharges:

Emeritus / Regional: $37.50
Regional Referee: $37.50
National Referee or AR: $100.00
PRO / FIFA: $100.00

Payment: Credit card (~3%) or ACH (0.8%, max $5.00)

Quick Checklists

First-Time Regional Referee

18 or older
Referee license for each of previous 2 registration years (or qualifying exception)
25 referee games + 15 AR games at adult amateur or above
Background Screening · SafeSport · SHPE
Online/in-person Regional training
Online Laws of the Game update
In-person practical training
FIFA Fitness Test (sprint and interval)
3 referee evaluations, avg 8.0+

Regional Recertification

18 or older
Regional license in at least 1 of previous 3 years, or career National/NAR license
Background Screening · SafeSport · SHPE
Online or in-person recertification training
Online Laws of the Game update
In-person/virtual practical training
FIFA Fitness Test (sprint and interval)
2 referee evaluations, avg 8.0+

First-Time National Referee / NAR

21 or older
Application required · Selected by U.S. Soccer
Regional license in each of previous 2 registration years
55 adult amateur+ games (40 referee, 25 AR)
Background Screening · SafeSport · SHPE
Online National training
Online Laws of the Game update
Attend and complete National Camp
FIFA Fitness Test, all parts
3 National evaluations by 3 different NRCs

National Recertification

21 or older
Application required · Selected by U.S. Soccer
National Match Official license in previous year
12 adult amateur+ games in previous year (exemptions may apply)
Background Screening · SafeSport · SHPE
Online National recertification training
Online Laws of the Game update
Attend and complete National Camp
FIFA Fitness Test, all parts
3 National evaluations by 3 different NRCs